


everything returns to the earth

by meteoranger



Category: Twisted-Wonderland (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, M/M, POV Second Person, Ruggie POV, unknown magical illness or something like that
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-12
Updated: 2020-11-12
Packaged: 2021-03-09 19:00:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,790
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27521167
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/meteoranger/pseuds/meteoranger
Summary: Leona was meant for greatness, you thought. He was supposed to make it to the top, to prove everyone wrong and become number one, to rule like he was meant to, no matter what anyone said. And you were supposed to be there with him, by his side, as he did so, just as you had sworn long ago.He wasn't supposed to be like this, crumbling and fading away, slipping through your fingers like sand.In which for reasons unknown, Leona begins to disintegrate, and there's nothing anyone, not even Ruggie, can do about it. Told from Ruggie's POV.
Relationships: Ruggie Bucchi/Leona Kingscholar
Comments: 3
Kudos: 33





	everything returns to the earth

He was falling apart, and you didn’t know what to do.

You don’t know exactly when it started, nor did you remember exactly when you first noticed. It was subtle, after all, barely noticeable to nought but a trained eye like yours, and even easier to miss when one wasn’t looking. But you were always looking, always, unable to tear your gaze away from him and the radiance he emanated, seemingly without notice. And so it was you, only you, who took notice of the tiniest of cracks that began to appear on his skin, cracks reminiscent of the time he lost control of himself and you had to bear the brunt of his anger, cracks you remembered forming not only on your own skin, but also in your heart.

He didn’t speak of it, not one word, but you knew that he wasn’t oblivious. Nothing ever escaped his notice, after all, and he most definitely wouldn’t miss any changes to his own body. He didn’t speak of it, and so you didn’t ask, even though your concern gnawed at you with each passing day. You didn’t ask, not even as the cracks slowly began to grow and multiply like mold, not even as you started to feel him drifting farther and farther away from you.

Of course, you tried to find answers for yourself, though you tried your best to keep from raising any suspicion. You tried the internet, the library, you even tried to see if you could subtly wheedle any information out of the teachers, but your efforts largely ended in vain. You weren’t even sure what exactly you were looking for - was it a disease? A curse? Something else? You didn’t know, and not having any information only made you feel lost. If you didn’t know anything, then there was nothing you could do, and that scared you more than anything.

He noticed what you were up to, of course he did. It happened one afternoon, when you were sitting in the botanical garden together, and you were trying to ask him in the subtlest of ways how he was feeling, if there was anything up with him lately, mentioning something about how some of the other Savanaclaw students were complaining they were feeling under the weather and were having difficulties staying in shape for magift practice. A tournament was approaching, after all, and it wouldn’t be good if everyone wasn’t performing at their best. His tail swished, then, whipping against your arm lightly as if to scold you, but when you turned to look at him, his gaze was distant, looking somewhere you couldn’t see.

“Stop it,” he said, voice soft and somewhat strained, as if just talking was difficult. “Whatever you’re doing, stop it. It’s not going to change anything.”

“Wh-what do you mean, Leona-san?” you asked, feigning ignorance even if you knew it was futile. Your hands trembled just the slightest bit, making it so you couldn’t properly stick the thread through the eye of the needle you were holding so you could fix a tear on your own blazer - Leona’s blazer, technically, the very same he had handed down to you. “We’ve been training for months getting ready for this tournament, we should-”

“I said, stop it,” he only repeated; even the way he said it lacked any conviction. “Nothing can be done. Just give it up.”

“D-don’t say that!” Just like that, you lost any composure you had wanted to keep held together. Those words had struck a chord, after all - reminded you of the last time he had given up like this, of the defeated look on his face, of the betrayal you had felt. “Y-you can’t say that for sure! Anything is possible with magic, right? Right? Wh… Whatever it is, surely there’s a way! You can’t just give up and say we can’t do anything! W-we’ll try to find something, I’ll do the best I can, so don’t give up! Okay? There’s definitely a way… It’s too soon to give up on everything! Leona-san!”

Normally, he would’ve growled at you in irritation and told you to shut up after an outburst like that; but things were different now -  _ he  _ was different now, and he was silent as he waited for you to finish, before simply sighing and shaking his head. “I’m saying there’s nothing that can be done because I know. You think I didn’t try to find a solution? Idiot.” He turned his back to you then, curling up slightly against himself as he lay his head on the grass. “Give it up, Ruggie. It’s useless.”

You opened your mouth to fight back, but something about the way he said that - sorrowful, perhaps even rueful - told you there was no point in arguing. That he wasn’t just telling you to give up because it was a bother and he didn’t want any help; that he was telling you the whole truth, that there really wasn’t anything that could be done, and that any efforts would be completely wasted.

Your shoulders slumped, and you felt your heart sink straight to your stomach. If there was nothing that could be done… If there was nothing that he or you or anyone else could do… Then, what  _ were _ you supposed to do? You thought that having the answer would give you some guidance, but now you just felt more lost than ever, as if the aimless path you were taking had disappeared completely and you were left standing in the darkness, without a single trace of light for you to aim towards.

Though he still lay next to you, alive and breathing and simply existing, you already felt your heart begin to mourn.

* * *

Days passed, and the tournament got even closer and closer. His condition worsened and worsened each day - you could see the cracks spreading, becoming bigger, spanning across his back and his shoulders and his legs as he got dressed - and yet he attended practice more and more, much to the dorm’s delight. After all, why wouldn’t they rejoice? Their king was leading them, guiding them, showing them that perhaps a complete victory was something they could really achieve this time. You watched from the sidelines, your eyes dim as he got on his broom and showed them difficult maneuvers, your gaze landing on the cracks forming on his abdomen in the brief moment his shirt hiked up when he did a flip mid-air. Your hand tightened on your own broom for a moment, wondering if anyone else noticed, but they were too distracted by his skill, too amazed and too eager to see more and learn more from someone as great as him.

And you found yourself distracted as well, but by something completely different - the smile on his face, the laughter in his eyes, the almost-childish glee in his voice as he encouraged the other students to try the same move he did. It was a rare sight, and while you were privy to it more often than most, it was few and far between to have it so out in the open like this for everyone to see. If anything that only made the ache in your chest worse, knowing the number of instances you could see this view was limited, but not knowing when this precious time would run out.

You wanted to see this face of his more often. Lively, happy, free, as if he didn’t have a single care or trouble in the world - as if he was just living his life to the fullest as best he could. It was your favorite face, one you wanted to treasure forever. You didn’t know what you’d do if you could never see it ever again.

“Hey, Ruggie, what are you spacing out for?” He called out to you, then, and you looked up to meet his gaze - bright, the green of summer, reminding you of the grassy fields back home. “You better come and join, or these freshmen are gonna become stronger than you.”

“Oh? I don’t think so,” you responded with a smirk, brushing aside your worries for now. That’s right - you had to take advantage of moments like this, of time spent with him, before he was gone, before you lost him completely. You mounted your own broom, flying into the air to arrive at his side, with such speed that resembled a strong gust of wind; the freshmen looked amazed, while he simply smiled in acknowledgment of your ability and of your place next to him, where you belonged. “Maybe they can become stronger, sure, but no one’s got me beat when it comes to speed.”

“Hoh, is that so?” He chuckled softly then and nodded his head, before turning his attention back to the freshmen. “How about it, then? Me and Ruggie, against all of you - try and see if you can get past us.”

A challenge like that, in the past, would’ve made even the dorm juniors flinch, but now everyone was completely fired up, looking excited at the idea of getting to test their abilities against the dorm’s strongest. Even you felt the pride swelling in your chest at how much they’d grown in the past months, and found yourself eager to see the results of their hard work with your own eyes.

“Alright, let’s get this started~” you hummed, speeding off again. The wind blowing against your face was cold but refreshing, and the sun shone high and bright in the sky, the warmth just right on your skin.

It was a good day, you thought. You wished it would last forever.

* * *

Everything else seemed to be going so smoothly that, for a while, you thought things were going to be fine, that the thing you were dreading would perhaps never come to pass after all. The tournament went even better than you had expected - Savanaclaw won most of their matches, and when it came to the championship against Diasomnia, everyone held out well enough to at least finish with a draw, a result that was obviously much better than an overwhelming defeat. The match itself had been so spectacular that many whispered it was surely one for the history books, that the great showdown between Leona Kingscholar and Malleus Draconia in particular would never be forgotten.

The party at the dorm that night was well-deserved, well-earned - a feast greater than anyone had ever seen, sponsored entirely by the royal Kingscholar family, with tables upon tables piled on with food and drink. For you, who knew of starvation far more than you knew of fulfilment, it was definitely quite lavish, truly a dream come true; there was so much food that you felt you could be full for months and never go hungry ever again. You tried to grab as much food as you could, but even with how much you piled on your plate it was as though the supply was never ending; you couldn’t help but wonder if there was really that much food, or if this was somehow a result of magic.

Good food, good music, and good vibes, all coming together for what you thought was probably the best night of your life. Everybody was having so much fun, eating and singing and laughing together, going off with endless praises about everyone who did well on the field that day. From where you sat, you could see Jack surrounded by some third-years, playfully putting their arms around him and ruffling his hair, telling him he wasn’t so bad after all and that he did a great job, and Jack’s face reddening as he weakly protested that he didn’t do as much as his upperclassmen, while at the same time being unable to hold back the proud, happy grin that was spreading on his face. The sight of it made you smile, made you feel that swell of pride once more; this was a really great dorm, you thought, and you wouldn’t trade these people for anyone in the world, except maybe your grandma.

And, maybe -

You paused then, midway into another bite of steak, realizing that Leona wasn’t among your numbers. He was practically the main star of the night, and yet he wasn’t here, even though you were positive you had seen him around just a few minutes ago. Your eyes ran over the crowd, trying to find him, and when you couldn’t, you asked the student nearest to you if he knew where Leona was. “I think I saw him go back to his room a while ago,” the student, a fellow second-year, said, tilting his head slightly. “Said something about needing some rest. Totally deserved it, we wouldn’t have done so well if he hadn’t taught us, huh, Ruggie?”

You didn’t even hear the rest of what he said, your blood turning cold so quickly that for a moment you couldn’t do a thing. The other student blinked and asked if you were fine, but you were already putting your plate down and hurriedly leaving the lounge, heading as quickly as you could towards Leona’s room as your heart thumped rapidly in your chest.

The sight that met your eyes when you finally arrived left you glued you to the doorway. Leona was hunched over on his bed, coughing painfully - and out of his lips fell sand, coarse, dry sand that spilled on his blankets like blood. The cracks on his skin were slowly creeping up to his face now, and with each cough it was as though parts of him were slowly chipping away as well. For a moment all you could do was stand there, unsure of what to do, before you realized that anything was probably better than nothing. You closed the door behind you, knowing he wouldn’t want anyone to see him like this, and you rushed to his side, holding him steady so he wouldn’t fall. “Leona-san! Leona-san, are you- Should I- S-should I get some water?” 

“W-” He opened his mouth to speak, but that only seemed to make things worse, and he coughed even harder. His body shook violently with each cough, and with how close you were to him you could feel every single movement, every single tremor of pain that ran through him, and you wished desperately that you could absorb at least some of it to ease his burden. “W-... W-water… Ruggie…”

“G-got it.” You moved to get up, then, but when another cough racked his body you realized you couldn't possibly leave him, not even for a second. And you remembered, just then, how foolish you were to think of even leaving, when you were a trained mage capable of producing water at will. There was, thankfully, an empty glass by the bedside table, and you reached for it, using your magic to fill it with water before gently holding it to Leona's lips. “H-here. Slowly…”

It took some effort, but he managed to drink the whole glass, and fortunately it seemed to be of some help. His coughing subsided, then, and he collapsed onto the bed with labored breaths. You conjured a wet towel and sat by his side, wiping the sweat off his brow, trying to keep your hands from shaking too much. You had never seen him this… this  _ weak _ , this vulnerable, and had the circumstances been different, had it been something like a common cold or a little fever, you probably would’ve joked about it, saying he looked even more like a child that needed to be taken care of more than ever; but this was different, far different, you could  _ feel _ him crumbling bit by bit and there was no way you could make light of that. 

You saw his hand reach for you, before hesitating and pulling back; you took it anyway, clasping it in yours, and you saw his eyes widen in surprise for a moment.

“I’m here, Leona-san. It’ll be fine,” you said in as steady a voice as you could muster; you didn’t believe the words, and you doubted them more than you doubted anything in your life, but now wasn’t the time for honest and painful truths. “I’m here… I’m here.”

The words, at least, seemed to help soothe him. His hand squeezed yours weakly, and you felt that he would be holding on much tighter had he the strength for it. You heard him utter a soft “Thank you,” words he rarely ever said, his voice barely reaching your ears before he closed his eyes and fell asleep.

* * *

Everything seemed like a blur after that night.

With Leona’s condition worsening to the point that it was impossible to hide, you finally managed to convince him to ask for help, only to find out that Crowley and the other teachers had already known, but had kept silent and feigned ignorance as per his request. You didn’t even have the time to process how you felt about that; a part of you had always known, because there was no way he would’ve gone so long without even them noticing, and you wanted to shake them, to demand why they hadn’t done anything, even if you knew they’d say the same thing Leona had - that it was useless, that they couldn’t change anything, that there was nothing anyone could do. You could see it in their eyes, anyway, in the resigned look on Crewel’s face when he saw Leona lying unconscious on his bed, sand gathering on the sheets as he fell apart even further, in the way Crewel met your gaze and shook his head slowly, knowing what you meant to ask even without you saying anything.

Leona had asked to not be taken home or to any hospital, wanting to stay in Savanaclaw for as long as he could, and they didn’t want to disrespect the wishes of a man who was nearing the end of his days. Needless to say, the dorm went into a panic when they learned of what was happening. You couldn’t fault them for their shock and their confusion, couldn’t fault them for reacting the same way you had at the start, desperately searching for a cure, a solution, for  _ anything _ that could be of help. Crowley had to explain the whole situation - had to admit that neither they, in fact, actually knew much of anything, but that it was something that was almost completely unheard of and definitely something that couldn’t be dealt with by any means. It was a very rare condition, he said, caused by strong magic that no one really understood, and there was no known way of it being cured.

There was nothing that could be done. Of course, that was the thing that hurt most of all.

Efforts turned, instead, to caring for Leona and making the last of his days as comfortable and without pain as possible. He was mostly confined to his bed, and even if he had the strength to move around he was advised to not leave the dorm or at least stray too far from it. On good days, he would feel well enough to drop by magift practice - a daily routine that didn’t stop even after the tournament, because there was always room for improvement and Savanaclaw was determined to take the throne and keep it - but he couldn’t stay long enough out in the sun, and usually had to go back inside after just a few rounds. Most of the time, he’d watch from the balcony of his room instead, but it wasn’t the same as seeing things up close.

He needed sleep more than ever, now, with how quickly his body grew tired, and yet you found him trying to stay awake as best as he could, as long as he could manage, before he reached his limit. It was odd, how just a few weeks ago you had to drag him out of bed and coax him to wake up to attend his classes, but now you had to tell him he needed to go to bed and get some rest. Still, most days, you found himself indulging him - just another round of magift practice, just another chapter of a book, just another chess match - unable to rid him of his chance to spend the little time he had left as he liked; after all, you couldn’t possibly promise him that there was always tomorrow, that there was always another day, couldn’t give him that kind of certainty. Sometimes, you spent the time talking - it was difficult for him, so he did most of the listening as you talked about all sorts of things, like your classes or what the dorm was up to or how your grandmother was doing back home, just little stories to fill the void. When he did fall asleep at last, you tucked him in and stayed by his side, watching over him, not leaving in fear that he’d vanish forever if you left him.

As heavy as you felt on the inside, you knew you had to take charge of Savanaclaw as the second in command, otherwise the entire dorm would collapse. Leona told you himself, one night when he was awake and feeling well enough to speak, that he was leaving everything to you. Your breath hitched, your heart stopping momentarily in your chest, because all you could think about was that he was already saying goodbye. It probably reflected on your face, then, because he looked at you and smiled a little, voice teasing as he said, “Why the long face? It’ll be a good experience for you, won’t it? Being the boss, that is. It’ll look good on your resume for the future, too.”

“Y-you know it’s not that simple, Leona-san.” There were so many things you wanted to say - like how you weren’t ready for leadership yet, like how you didn’t want to take on that mantle without him by your side, like how he was the one and only king and nothing could change that - but the words wouldn’t come out. Instead you fumbled, reaching for the words that came easiest, words that didn’t really reflect what you felt in your heart. “I mean, I’ll do it, of course, but it’s not like I know how to lead an entire dorm…”

“Idiot, what do you think I’ve been trying to teach you all this time? Don’t tell me I gave you all those free lessons for nothing.” You winced lightly as he flicked your forehead, a soft sigh escaping his lips. “You’re always underestimating yourself. I wouldn’t entrust Savanaclaw to you if I didn’t know you were capable.”

“That’s…” Had things been different, the words probably would’ve made you soar with pride and happiness; this time, though, they made your eyes sting with lonely tears, tears you willed not to fall in front of the man you didn’t want to lose more than anything. “I… I don’t want you to go, Leona-san.”

Your voice was soft, barely audible, but he heard it. He was silent for a few moments, before shifting and pulling you close so that you were laying against him. His body was still warm, that hadn’t changed, but with this short a distance you could feel how fragile he was far more than ever, as though he would dissolve completely if you touched him. “...Idiot,” was all he muttered, and nothing else, before he closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep once again.

You closed your eyes, and you wept.

* * *

You weren’t even able to tell him you loved him before he died. 

You felt as though you were in a trance - perhaps this was a bad dream, a horrible nightmare, and things would be alright as soon as you woke up, but you were living in reality and he was gone, gone, gone so young and so early. The entire dorm broke down that day, and you saw tears falling from the faces of people you had never thought you’d see cry; you, on the other hand, felt completely numb, as if your insides had gone completely hollow and you were just an empty husk that couldn’t even bring itself to move. You were used to death, of course; it was survival of the fittest where you came from, after all, and you had lost people before, both strangers and those you cared about like your parents. Still, being used to something didn’t mean it hurt any less, and you wondered, then, if this time the pain was so great that your heart just shut itself completely to keep itself from breaking.

The funeral was held in the Afterglow Savannah, of course, for a prince was supposed to be buried alongside fellow royalty. But Leona was just that, a prince, and so it wasn’t as big an affair as how one would bury a king, with a procession around the capital and crowds upon crowds wailing and weeping; instead, it was a private and quiet ceremony, the only real noise being the sound of Cheka’s cries as he mourned his uncle, his mother looking pained as she held and shushed him and reassured him Leona was in a much better place now, where he could no longer feel any pain. It did nothing to comfort him, and no one could blame him for that; after all, no matter what anyone said, the uncle he loved and admired was gone, and he’d never be able to play with him ever again.

All of Savanaclaw had been permitted to attend, and so you were there with your fellow students, standing in front of them as their new dorm leader. The title meant nothing to you, really; maybe back then it was one you would’ve welcomed, had it been handed down to you after you challenged Leona and won it fair and square, but not like this, not with him dead and gone and the leadership passing onto you like natural succession. It wasn’t what you wanted, but it was what you got, and you weren’t going to waste your time complaining about it; after all, the responsibility over the dorm was yours, now, and there was no way you would tarnish Leona’s legacy by not living up to it.

He didn’t even have a body left to bury - when you found him, he had disintegrated completely into sand, leaving not a single trace of the Leona you knew behind. And so all you were really burying was this sand, as if he had been cremated and these were his ashes, but it wasn’t the same,  _ it wasn’t the same, _ it wasn’t him and this wasn’t how things were supposed to be. He was more than this, meant for things far greater than even you could ever imagine - you wanted to see him standing at the top of the world, looking down on everyone who told him he’d never be number one and proving them wrong, wearing that proud, arrogant look on his face that you loved.

And you wanted to be by his side when that happened.

Instead, all you could do now was watch as they buried what was left of him alongside his possessions, like his staff and his necklaces and an assortment of other things you felt he didn’t really need. You listened as his brother, the king, spoke of him fondly, spoke of his intelligence and his tenacity that was much like the respected King of Beasts of legend, but you didn’t really process any of the words, your thoughts instead revisiting the first time you met, the first time you spoke, the first time he shared with you his dreams, the first time you saw him smile, the first time you swore you’d follow him and stay with him and turn the world on its head with him. They seemed like such distant days, now, days belonging to a much better time, a time when the world still had him in it.

But now he was gone, forever, his dreams having stayed as dreams. You had wanted to make them come true with him, you thought; somewhere along the way, his dreams had joined with yours, but now you were on your own once again.

For the first time since he died, you felt a painful throb in your heart once more, and a tear fell down your cheek as you smiled in your sorrow and whispered softly.

“Long live the king.”

* * *

Such is the end of the tale of Leona Kingscholar, the second prince of the Afterglow Savannah.

Ironic, isn’t it? For the man with the power to steal one’s tomorrow, have his own be stolen from him.


End file.
